Introduction

Veterinarians have a number of tools available to help them diagnose feline heart disease. Many of these are routinely available in a general companion animal veterinary clinic. The more advanced diagnostic procedures generally will require referral to a veterinary cardiologist or possibly to a veterinary teaching hospital.

Diagnosing Heart Disease in Cats

Heart disease in cats is usually diagnosed based upon some combination of a through history, a complete physical examination, a complete blood count and chemistry panel, assessment of systolic blood pressure and possibly thyroid hormone levels, thoracic radiographs, an electrocardiogram and an echocardiogram. These tests are largely non-invasive and not painful to the animal.

Once heart disease has been diagnosed, further tests may be performed to assess whether an underlying condition is causing the disease or if the cat is having concurrent problems with infection or damage to other organs. Skilled veterinary cardiologists can diagnose cardiac disease without a tremendous amount of difficulty.